Angel Grove University's March Madness
by Dark Red Knight
Summary: Its March Madness and Angel Grove Univeristy has finally gotten a bid into the NCAA Basketball tournament. Though can the men's and ladies team beat some of the best teams and win a championship? Power Rangers and March Madness combine.
1. Chapter 1

This tournament is in an AU. As you can see, I messed around with the Power Ranger time line so I could include Rangers from SPD. This tournament takes place in 2005.

The beginning of spring. For most people, the extra amount of sun during the day brought happiness. Many people believed that the sun and the idea of spring relieved them from stress. They could feel the end of the year coming and summer break in their grasp. People walked more briskly and care free. Ah yes, to most the Spring Time was considered one of the best times of the year.

Though to some, spring brought pressure and chaos and most of all madness. When March came around, some people knew that this would be the most pressured and stressful month of their year. Yes, March meant March Madness, and this meant the NCAA basketball tournament was going to begin.

Though this tournament was different from any other. True, it seemed like a normal game to most as the rules were the same. Two twenty-minute halves and over time if needed. Seven fouls until the penalty for a team and six fouls for a player to be fouled out of the game. The team who scored the most amount of points at the end of the game wins and like always there are only five players on the floor at the time. Though this is what made the tournament so crazy and different from other sports, you lose and you go home. No matter how far you made it in the tournament, one loss meant elimination. There are no second chances. There were sixty-four teams to start and the one team that could go undefeated would win it all.

For some teams, it was worse than others. The lower seed you were, the harder teams you had to face first. Though for the high seeded teams, being upset by the lower seeded teams was one of the worst feelings that they would ever feel. Being undefeated for any time is a near impossible feat and only one team could do it. This tournament not only tested teams skills, but their mental toughness and their desire to win it all.

For Angel Grove University, this would be a real test for them. This was the first year that both teams got into the tournament and was their first entry in history. Both teams had a scrappy eighteen win season and lost ten games, but by coming in second place in the Pacific Ten Tournament, both teams cemented a spot in the round of sixty four. Their teams were fairly young and they were the twelfth out of a possible sixteen in the West Part of the Bracket. To make it worse for both teams, they both had the number one seeded Duke teams in their division. There was no doubt that Duke was the best team in both the Men and Women's division. To get into the final four, which was the promise land for any team, it would mean that Angel Grove University would have to beat the Duke Blue Devils.

There were two days before the tournament began and both teams were nervous. While they were happy to have a spot in the tournament, they knew that winning would not be so easy. In fact they knew that the odds against them were unreal. They were just hoping to do the best they could and give it their all at winning. They were practicing like crazy since the brackets were announced and they were well prepared for this. They just hoped that everything would go well. It was a late night and all the teammates decided to get together and have some dinner. They were all talking amongst themselves and were recounting the six days ago when they heard that they were in the tournament.

----------------------------- Flashback ----------------------------------------------------

Both teams had just finished some running drills when they went to the TV to watch ESPN. They were all crossing their fingers as ESPN was about to release which teams made it to the tournament. All the players were kind of jittery. They knew that their eighteen win and ten loss season was kind of scrappy, but they were hoping that their second place finish in the PAC 10 tournament which they finished in second place and gave them an overall record of twenty one wins and eleven losses would be good enough to cement them a place in the tournament.

After a lot of speculation and talk by the announcers, they were ready to release the bracket.

Bill Cower: "Ladies, and gentlemen. Here is what you have been waiting for. The release of the Men and Women NCAA Basketball Division 1 tournament. In just five days, March Madness will begin. Just to remind you, there are four brackets and sixteen teams in each bracket. Each bracket has seeded teams numbers one through sixteen. The number sixteen team plays the number one team, the number fifteen team plays the number two team, the number fourteen team plays the number three team, the number thirteen team plays the number four team, the number twelve team plays the number five team, the number eleven team plays the number six team, the number ten team plays the number seven team, and the ninth team squares off against the number eight team. Lets start off with the ladies bracket."

Steven Jackson: "In the South, the seedlings are number sixteen, Central Connecticut. At number fifteen we have Texas A&M. At number fourteen we have Creighton. …"

For the women team the list went on forever. They were no nerve racked because they hadn't been called once yet. Only the Western bracket was left and the girls knew that they could not possibly be ranked higher than number ten. If they weren't called soon, they knew that they would not be in it.

Langston McDonald: "Finally in the Western Bracket. At number sixteen, Penn State. At number fifteen, we have Pitt. At number fourteen, we have SIU. At number thirteen, we have Rutgers. At number twelve, we have Angel Grove University. Quick congratulations to the girls team as this is their first bid in the tournament ever."

As the girls heard this, they screamed as loud as they could. So they weren't number ten, but they made the tournament and did a nice job. They quickly quitted down as they wanted to hear the number five team they would play against.

Langston: "At number five we have Illinois. … At number one, we have the powerhouse of the tournament, the Duke Blue Devils."

The girls were a bit scared to hear this as Duke was the powerhouse of the tournament and if they had to face them, the best team they would probably have to face in the tournament. The girls learned this the hard way, as they got crushed eighty nine to fifty the only time they played Duke during the season, not to mention the fact that Angel Grove was the home team. Though, they weren't so concerned about Duke right now. They were just concentrated on beating Illinois and making it to the round of thirty-two.

Bill Cower: "Now to start with the Men's bracket."

Steven: "In the South, at number sixteen is Nevada. Louisville is at number fifteen. Albany is number fourteen. Long Beach State is thirteen. Xavier is number twelve. BYU is number eleven. Creighton is number ten. Surprising UPenn is number nine."

The men's team was also starting to get a bit nervous as they knew that if they weren't called up soon, it meant they would not be in the tournament. Like the ladies, the men knew that a number ten seed was probably the best they could hope for.

Langston: "Finally in the Eastern Bracket. At number sixteen, Eastern Kentucky. At number fifteen, Oral Roberts. At number fourteen, Winthrop. At number thirteen, UNLV. At number twelve, Angel Grove University. Again congrats to the school as this is the men's first ever bid into the tournament."

The boys then launched into the air and screamed as loud as they could. They knew that their bracket was tough and that they would have to be at their best every game, but they were happy that they made it into the tournament. They then quitted down as the number five seed was about to be announced.

Langston: "At number five is Virginia Tech … At number one is the powerhouse of the tournament the Duke Blue Devils."

The boys were a bit nervous when they heard Virginia Tech's name and it wasn't any better for them when they heard that Duke was in their bracket. Virginia Tech creamed them eighty-six to sixty three when Angel Grove University was at home. The loss to Duke was even more embarrassing. Though the men knew that their goal was to take down Virginia Tech in the first round.

----------------------------------- End Flashback ------------------------------------------

The team members were finishing up their meals when Jack Landers, the starting Point Guard for the Men's team, stood up.

Jack: "Guys, in two days the first round begins. I am proud of both of our teams. Now lets make a pact. We are going to go past the first round. You ladies are going to take down Illinois and we are going to beat Virginia Tech. We practiced so hard and I know that we can do this. As long as we stick together and play hard, I know that this is possible."

The rest of the teammates stood up and nodded their heads, giving each other words of encouragement and high fives before they went to their rooms. They knew that after tonight ended, one game would remain before they would leave their college home to go play in the tournament. They were all praying for the best.


	2. Round 1: Rangers vs Hokies

It was the day before the tournament. Both the men and women's teams were getting a bit nervous. The Fighting Illinois and the Virginia Tech Hokies were both amazing teams and very hard to beat. They were practicing like crazy, but they knew that the hard work they put in didn't mean a victory.

Before long the women's team headed out to the Midwest where they would take on the fighting Illinois in a couple of days. Their tournament started a few days after the men, so in addition to practicing they had a chance to do a bit of sight seeing.

The men's team had their game the next day. So they went to New York to practice in Madison Square Garden to practice that night and then the following day before the match.

The Angel Grove team was pretty happy. Even though they might end up losing the game to Virginia Tech, they got to play in Madison Square Garden, which is known as the most famous arena in the World. New York was definitely the place to be and they were happy that they were there. This would defenetly be an intriguing match with a lot of tans in the stands. After all, this was MSG in NY.

--------------------------------------- Friday, March 14 -----------------------------------------

CBS and ESPN cameras started to roll as the Angel Grove Rangers and the Virginia Tech Hokies started to practice at MSG. The fans were already in the stadium, with some just arriving.

ESPN was having their pre game show as they were getting ready to talk about the game and what the analysts thought the outcome would be.

Scott Junior: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the ESPN pregame show. In about fifteen minutes, the Angel Grove Rangers will take on the Virginia Tech Hokies. Though before we get to further analysis, we want to apologize for something that we did on Selection Sunday. Duke is in the south for the men's tournament and in the Midwest for the girls. We got the information wrong as you probably noticed and we are sorry. The UCon Huskies are the number one seeded teams in the Midwest for the girls and in the east for the guys. Now to get on to our analysis of the game. Who do you guys believe will win this game?"

Nick Scotts: "My choice is the Virginia Tech Hokies. They are the far more superior team in offense and defense. Sure, the Angel Grove Rangers are much faster than Virginia and Angel Grove caught fire in the end of the season, but I don't believe that they can beat the Virginia Tech Hokies."

Vince Smith: "Come on, Angel Grove has some potential, but they don't have nearly enough fire power to stop Robert Krabbendam and Terrance Vinson. My choice is the Virginia Tech Hokies. I am sorry for the Angel Grove Rangers, but I don't think that they can make it to the next round."

Scott Junior: "I'll have to go with your choices. I think that Virginia Tech is the better team. I think that Angel Grove University has the talent to stop Virginia Tech. Though what does Angel Grove need to do to have any chance to win this game?"

Nick: "Their center, Sky Tate has to be hot the whole game. He has to avoid foul trouble and make his presence known to the other team. That will be the real key for the Angel Grove Rangers."

Vince: "For me their shooting guard and lead scorer, Conner McKnight has to catch on fire early and keep it like that the whole game. He needs to take control of the game for the Angel Grove Rangers in order for them to stand any chance of winning. Though Sky Tate has to be on fire as well."

Scott: "Well that wraps up the show for us everybody. The Angel Grove Rangers are going to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies right now on CBS. The tip off will be in about five minutes. Highlights and results from the game on ESPN. Enjoy the game everybody."

CBS cameras then started rolling on the floor at Madison Square Garden, as the Virginia Tech Hokies were about to take on the Angel Grove Rangers.

The camera was first focused on the Virginia Tech Hokies showing Robert Krabbendam and Terrance Vinson with some talking in the background. The camera then switched to the Angel Grove Rangers and their team practicing.

Billy Crawford: "There is Conner McKnight. The PAC 10 conference player of the year. He will have to be on fire if Angel Grove has a chance to win. We will be right back after these messages."

Some commercials appeared on the TVs and then CBS returned.

Billy Crawford: "The game is about to start up right now, Lets look at the teams quickly before the tip off."

Jean Smith: "For the Virginia Tech Hokies starting at point guard and their lead scorer is Jamon Gordon, at center is Robert Krabbendam, at shooting guard is Marcus Travis, at power forward is Terrance Vinson, and at short forward is Deron Washington."

Jack Andrews: "Starting for the Angel Grove Rangers. At point guard, Jack Landers. Starting at short forward is Ethan James. Starting at power forward is Shane Clark. At center is Sky Tate and at shooting guard and the PAC 10 conference player of the year is Conner McKnight."

The tip off began as Sky Tate knocked the ball back into Jack Landers' hands. He quickly found Shane open in the paint and threw it to him. Shane slammed it down for two points.

Billy Crawford: "Virginia Tech is going to have to play better defense than that in order to win. They have the better team, but no one should be allowing a slam dunk on the first play of the game."

Marcus Travis tried to pass it to Jamon Gordon, but Jack intercepted the pass and threw it to Sky Tate. Sky ran all the way down the lane and slammed it into the basket with one hand.

Jean Smith: "I know that Travis is a rookie, but he shouldn't be making a mistake like that. Two slam dunks to start off the game for Angel Grove and this is not a good sign for the Hokies."

The game progressed as both teams became restless. The Rangers took the early fourteen to six lead, but Sky Tate fouled two times in the opening six minutes of the game forcing him to sit down. With out Sky Tate being there to guard Krabbendam he was easily scoring and out-rebounding both Shane Clark and Ethan James. This allowed his team to go on a seventeen to three run, putting the Hokies up by a score of twenty-three to seventeen. The Rangers' coach TJ Johnson saw enough and called a time out.

TJ: "What the hell is happening out there!? You guys were up by eight and now you are getting creamed like we did the last time! Just because Sky isn't in the game doesn't mean that you should be getting beaten this badly. Oh god! Bridge you are getting into this game for Jamal. Jamal you did a nice job backing up Sky, but we need to try something different. Come on guys, if we play Rangers' style we can put ourselves back in this. Watch out for Krabbendam, but don't always triple team him. They are great from the perimeter with Gordon."

The time out was over and the teams retook the floor. TJ motivated his team well as the Rangers played Ranger style. Conner made a three point shot after a quick pass by Jack to cut the lead to three. While Jamal was taking the ball down the court, Jack stole it from him and threw it down to Conner who not only slammed the ball in, but also got fouled on the play. Conner nailed the free throw shot and the game was tied and twenty-three all.

Billy Crawford: "This might look like bad news for the Hokies. Not only have the Rangers have tied up the game, but also it looks like Conner McKnight has caught on fire. Bad news for any team playing the Rangers."

Vinson drove inside to the paint and tried to put it in, but Ethan got a perfect jump and blocked the ball. He threw it to Jack. Jack, Conner, and Bridge were driving down the court. It was a three on one situation and the ball kept on being thrown around. The ball eventually went into the hands of Bridge Carson and he put the ball in the basket, giving Angel Grove a twenty-five to twenty-three lead.

The rest of the half was pretty much an even to even battle. A few minutes before the first half was over Sky came back into the game, but he wasn't a real big factor. With nineteen seconds remaining on the shot clock Gordon took a quick three point shot that put up the Hokies by one. With nine seconds remaining the Rangers were driving down the court, but Sky's last second dunk attempt was blocked.

Billy Crawford: "So the second half has come to a close. The Hokies currently lead the game by a score of thirty-six to thirty-five."

As CBS switched to another station the teams were taking their halftime break. In the Hokies' locker room their coach, Seth Greenberg, was talking about how his team could beat Angel Grove if they slowed them down. He was a bit upset that his team allowed Angel Grove to come back into the game and how it was a close one.

In the Rangers' locker room it was a bit of a different story. TJ Johnson was upset that his team was lacking in defense and that Sky couldn't avoid foul trouble. Krabbendam was giving the Angel Grove Rangers so much trouble with out Sky blocking him. He already managed to score fifteen points and only had one foul. TJ was expressing to his team his need for them to come up bigger on defense.

TJ: "Guys, I am thinking of not starting Sky for the second half of the game. Krabbendam is killing us and we need to play him and the rest of their team with great defense. If I put Sky in and if he were to commit another foul, it wouldn't be good. We need to stop him and the perimeter defense. Man to man isn't working so well as we need to double team Krabbendam and then Gordon or Vinson find away to break free and bank the ball in. Try zone and help each other out. We are only down by one-point guys. We still have a fighting chance."

Halftime ended soon afterwards as the teams took to the courts again and after some shooting around to get warmed up again each team put on their five players and began playing again.

Billy Crawford: "Well Angel Grove seems to be trying something a little bit different. They are starting Jamal Robinson at the center position instead of Sky Tate, their starting center. Interesting move considering that Angel Grove is down by only one point, it is the start of the second half, and because Sky Tate only has committed two fouls so far."

Jean Smith: "Well, I don't know what TJ is thinking but Angel Grove better be rolling on all cylinders because if they lose TJ will be the easy blame for the loss."

The game started again and Angel Grove felt like the first few minutes were taking forever as they were getting creamed. With out Sky Tate guarding Krabbendam and with Vinson becoming hot from the line in addition to a lot of missed shots by the Rangers, the Hokies went on a fifteen to two run which increased their lead by fourteen points.

Billy Crawford: "Well I guess TJ is going to have to do a lot to make his decision look wiser as Virginia Tech is killing Angel Grove just like they did when both teams played each other in the Rangers' Arena during the regular season. They are currently losing by a score of fifty-one to thirty-seven,"

TJ called another time out, but decided against saying anything to the team. Instead he just pointed out that Sky Tate would enter the game for Jamal and that was it. To the Rangers' it was very apparent that TJ wasn't happy with the defense they were playing and they weren't going to complain. They knew that unless they tightened up their defense that they wouldn't be able to come back into the game.

Jack Andrews: "Well that doesn't look very good for these Rangers. TJ didn't say a word the whole time out. It is evident that he is pretty pissed off with his team's defense, but I think some of the blame must go back to him. After all he was the one that didn't put Sky in to block Krabbendam."

The game started up again and Angel Grove knew the defect that they had to overcome to end up winning the game. They were down by fourteen with twelve minutes left in the game. They all knew that this was definitely game time.

Ethan James tried to inbound the ball to Jack Landers, but the inbound pass was stolen by Deron Washington. Washington tried to throw the ball to Marcus Travis so Travis could put it in, but Sky Tate saw the move coming and jumped up in the air and stole the ball back before it could get to Travis.

Sky quickly threw the ball to Ethan, who placed it back down in the basket. Thirty seconds had been erased from the clock. So now it was fifty-one to thirty-nine for the Hokies with eleven minutes and thirty seconds remaining on the shot clock.

Angel Grove quickly went to zone defense hoping that they could get the ball back with out allowing the other team to score. Shane saw a pass coming and stole the ball. He threw it down to Jack who was able to go all the way to the basket and put the ball in, which cut the deficit down to ten points. Then after a missed shot by Gordon and a quick three point shot by Conner McKnight, the Rangers were only down by seven points.

Billy Crawford: "Well it seems as Angel Grove is starting to heat up again and at the right time. They are on a seven and o run which has cut the deficit to just seven points. They are currently trailing by a score of fifty-one to forty-four."

From there both teams each scored ten points in seven minutes with the Hokies up sixty-four to fifty-one at the end of the seven minutes. Though as the game was coming to a close, the Rangers were down by seven points. They only had three minutes left to tie or end of winning the game. Their season looked liked it was very close to being over.

At the start of the remanding four minutes of the game Krabbendam got the ball from Gordon and got fouled as he was slamming the ball in. He went to the line and missed the free throw, but nonetheless did the basket put the Hokies up by nine.

Conner McKnight responded by putting in a quick three point shot that spun around the basket before it went in, which cut the deficit to just six points. After a missed shot by Krabbendam, Shane's lay up cut the deficit down to just four points. Another missed shot by Vinson and a wide-open dunk by Sky Tate cut the deficit down to just two points.

With a minute left on the shot clock Gordon missed another shot and Jack quickly ran down the lane and threw the ball into the basket for two points. At this point in the game the Angel Grove fans were going nuts after their team went down from a fourteen-point deficit to tie up the game.

Jack Andrews: "Incredible, the Angel Grove University Rangers have gone down from a fourteen-point deficit to tie up the game. It looks like Seth Greenberg will call another time out. The Hokies have two time outs remaining."

After the time out the Hokies went back on to the floor and executed their plan perfectly. The only difference between the shot clock and game clock was about four seconds. So they waited until then and then fed the ball to Gordon who knocked down a two point jump shot.

Billy Crawford: "Ladies and Gentlemen, that might be the dagger for Angel Grove. They need to put in a shot in the next four seconds or this game is over."

Sky Tate in-bounded the pass to Jack who took no time throwing it to Conner McKnight who was at the other half of the court. With two seconds remaining Conner knew that he didn't have enough time to drive to the basket and put the ball in so he took a three point shot.

The ball kept on swerving around the basket as Conner and every one else in Madison Square Garden was in suspense. If Conner successfully knocked down a three point shot Angel Grove would win the game, but if not then they would lose it. For the Rangers and the Hokies it felt like the ball was swerving around the basketball rim forever. Each player looked intense and nervous about the outcome as the ball finally stop spinning and fell right into the basket. The game was over and the Angel Grove Rangers won it all.

Billy Crawford: "Holy God! This game is over, the Rangers from Angel Grove have upset the Hokies from Virginia Tech. Angel Grove is moving on to the round of thirty two!"

Jack Andrews: "Wow, this game really came down to the last second. Conner McKnight hit a three point shot just a second before the buzzer. This game really came down to the wire."

Jean Smith: "Yeah and the Rangers from Angel Grove will play the winner of the Pitt and Holly Cross game."

After the game was over all of players went to their locker room. The Hokies were upset that they lost, but the Rangers were happy. They knew that they still had a long and rough road ahead of them, but for now they were happy that they were able to upset a really good team like Virginia Tech.


	3. Next Day

Disclaimer: I do not own the Power Rangers, ESPN, CBS or any of their material. The other charecters belong to me. Finally, I do not intend to make any profit from this story.

Chapter 3

The Rangers got home late the following night and most of them got a small dinner and then went right to bed. It was late and the game completely tired them out, not to mention all the interviews that they had to give. Though they all went to sleep happy because they upset the number five seed Hokies and made it to the next round. They knew that in two days their next opponent would be decided, whether it be Holly Cross or Pitt.

Next Morning: 7:00 AM

Sky got out of his bed and hit Jack, who was his roommate in the hotel, in the back to wake him up. Jack looked at the clock and was upset.

Jack: "Sky, why are you waking me up so early? We got to bed at like one last night and I am so tired."

Sky: "Sports Center."

Jack quickly got up after Sky told him what was going on and as Sky turned on the TV all of the Angel Grove Rangers and their coach TJ Johnson came into the room to watch Sports Center hoping to see their team on air. Suddenly Sports Center came on.

On TV

Mike Dunblatt: "Hi I am Mike Dunblatt alongside Katie Erickson and we welcome you to Sports Center."

Katie Erickson: "Yesterday started March Madness. Though who would move on and who would get the first upset? We start with the number two George Town Hoyas vs. number fifteen Saint Mary's Gaels. … With eighteen minutes remaining in the second half Green put up back to back to back three point shots putting George Town up by nineteen and they would go on to win by a score of eighty nine-fifty seven.

The Rangers weren't upset that they weren't the first team aired, but five more games came up before they did.

Mike: "So for the first six games the higher seeded teams went six and o against lower seeded opponents. The Hokies of Virginia Tech were looking to keep that winning streak alive against the Rangers of Angel Grove University. The Rangers would start the game off in good fashion with back to back dunks giving them a four nothing lead. From there one out for the rest of the half both teams gained then lost momentum the whole way through resulting in the Hokies leading thirty-six thirty five going into half time. Though in the beginning of the second half TJ made an interesting move deciding to start Jamal Robinson at center instead of Sky Tate, their starting Center. Angel Grove would pay for a while as the Hoyas went on a fifteen to two run where Krabbendam scored eight of those points to put the Hoyas up by fourteen with twelve minutes remaining. Though the game was far from over as the Rangers lead by the PAC 10 player of the year Conner McKnight attempted a comeback. The Rangers went on a quick seven and o run that cut the deficit down to seven with eleven minutes remaining. The Rangers were still down by seven with just four minutes remaining. Krabbendam knocked down a dunk which put the Hokies up by nine with just a bit more than three minutes remaining. Though the Rangers used their speed and with thirty seven seconds remaining Jack Landers tied the game at sixty three. Though with four seconds remaining the end seemed apparent for Angel Grove as Gordon put the Hokies up by two. Though if you look at when Gordon made the shot, McKnight was running all the way down the floor. Jack bombed it to Conner who took a three with time expiring and it went swirling then in as the crowd went crazy. The Angel Grove University Rangers upset the Hokies by a score of sixty six-sixty five. With post game analysis and interviews we bring you to Nick Scotts and Vince Smith."

The video of Conner making the game winning three point shot was shown as Nick Scotts voice was in the background. "Conner's three point shot for the win highlighted Angel Grove's regular season, a miraculous comeback that has let them move forward."

Scott Junior: "Well guys, what did you think of that game?"

Vince: "That three point shot by McKnight was crazy and showed you why he really deserved to be the PAC 10 player of the year and no matter how far the Rangers finish in the tourney, that was a miraculous win for them."

Nick Scotts: "Yeah the game really showed how Conner McKnight can not only carry his team by himself, but take over the game. I must say that the even though Angel Grove lacked defense, the energy that they played with in the end of the game was unbelievable. They played like a championship caliber team at the end of the game."

Vince: "Yeah and we were lucky enough to get interviews with some of the players on the Rangers."

Nick Scotts to Conner McKnight: "First of all congratulations on what must be a big win for you guys."

Conner: "Thanks."

Nick Scotts: "Well Conner your team won and you did a great job taking over, but were you ever scared out there?"

Conner: "Well the Hokies are a really good team and there were times in the game where I have to admit that I was a bit frustrated, but everyone played really well and I think that we were able to prove that we are a really good team and showed people what we can do."

Nick Scotts: "What do you think you guys got to work on the hardest before next game?"

Conner: "Well our team dynamics was really good and our offense flowed nicely, but I probably have to say that we need to improve most when it comes to our defense. I think we were a bit lackluster when it came to that department tonight."

Vince to Jack: "First of all congratulations on making it past the first round. You didn't take a lot of shots this game, but you sure did come up with some big time steals and assists."

Jack: "A lot of people on our team are offensively gifted so I just try to do what I can do best to help the team out. We work great as a team so I know what these guys can do and they know what to expect from me so it helps me out a lot."

Vince: "What did you think of Conner McKnight and what he did? How about that game winning three point jump shot?"

Jack: "Conner is an amazing basketball player and like usual he came through in the clutch. It really does boost team morale when he is on the floor and I think I can speak for the team by saying that it is so much easier to come back in a game when you have an explosive scorer like him on the floor. Also I don't think that I am giving anything away when I say that we try to get the ball into his hands in those end game situations."

Nick Scotts to Sky Tate: "First of all congratulations on the team winning. I know a lot of people thought that it was interesting that your coach TJ decided to bench you to start the second half. Are you mad that he did that?"

Sky Tate: "Not at all. I played abysmal tonight and there are no excuses for it. I got into early foul trouble, wasn't aggressive enough in the paint when it came to scoring and grabbing rebounds to give us second chances or to get us back on the offensive side more often. I was lucky that my team stepped it up tonight. The team is great but I know coach expects me to do better, which is completely fair, and that I got to step it up for our next game."

Nick Scotts: "Anything to be happy about?"

Sky Tate: "Of course there is something to be happy about. Our team did a great job and we won. Seeing us play like we have been together for years and playing with such a high level of energy was amazing."

Nick Scotts: "How about McKnight's three point shot to win it?"

Sky Tate: "He is just an amazing basketball player and comes through all the time. It's really amazing to see him come through in the clutch like that."

Vince: "TJ, what are your thoughts about the game?"

TJ: "On the positives we played great offensively most of the game, played really unselfish basketball, played with a lot of high energy and never gave up, and got everyone involved. Though on the downside of things we needed to play better defense. Our defense was abysmal and we need to step it up to win the next game. Having a good offense is great, but defense wins games."

Vince: "How about McKnight's game winner?"

TJ: "Conner always comes through like that. With the game on the line I felt confident that he knew what to do. He is a good kid and because he has learned a lot from his team mates he does a good job."

Vince: "Thanks TJ and once again congratulations."

TJ: "Thanks Vince."

Mike: "So to recap it once again, the Rangers from Angel Grove University got the first upset of the tourney, beating the Hokies sixty six-sixty five. More March Madness when we return in sixty seconds."

Sky turned the TV off as everyone went back to their rooms and got some sleep. A couple of hours went by and Jack woke up and took another look at the clock as he saw it was eleven forty eight A.M. He looked around the room and saw that Sky was gone.

Jack: "Typical Sky. Waking up early to go for a run. I can't believe I slept this late! Though I am starving!"

Jack got changed quickly, brushed his teeth, and went down the elevator to the main lobby. He hoped that he would see some familiar faces down there and he did. When he got down there he saw Bridge Carson walking into the hotel and saw a sweaty Sky come back from the gym.

Jack: "Boy am I glad to see you two. I am starving! Want to get something to eat?"

Sky: "Sounds good to me. Though I need to take a quick shower, get changed, and call Syd quickly to confirm dinner for tonight. I'll meet you down here in about ten to fifteen minutes. Sound good?"

Jack: "Its fine with me, but if your girlfriend picks up don't take too long speaking to her. You know it is against regulations right?"

Jack smirked a bit. He always gave Sky a hard time about dating Syd because Sky was so big on rules that breaking one, like you can't date a fellow cadet, was something to taunt him about.

Bridge: "I just got back from seeing some family friends or should I say friends of my family? Its weird because the first one seems grammatically correct while the second one seems more true to me. Come to think of it-"

Bridge cut himself off as he saw the other two were giving him that "please if you must ramble do it later" glare.

Bridge: "Sounds good to me guys. I got to drop this bag off. Be back in five minutes."

They all agreed that they would meet at the gift shop and soon afterwards Bridge and Sky left to go up to their rooms. As Jack left towards the gift shop both Conner and Ethan went down to the main lobby where they were about to get some food until they heard someone call their name.

Person: "Conner? Ethan? Is that you?"

Conner and Ethan turned around to find their favorite teacher of all time, Dr. Thomas Oliver, standing right behind them. Conner and Ethan ran up to him and shaked his hand.

Ethan: "What are you doing here Dr. O? Why aren't you in Reefside?"

Conner: "Yeah, why are you in New York?"

Tommy: "Well Kim had to come to New York to go to a lecture for Doctors so Principal Randal made me take some mandatory vacation time and go to New York with Kim. Actually, I was at the game last night. You guys were awesome!"

Ethan: "Thanks man. We try our hardest for Coach TJ. Though how come you didn't tell us you were going to be there? We would have come and got you better seats or talked to you for a bit."

Tommy: "I didn't want to distract you guys. I knew that you were going to need all the concentration you could get."

Before Conner could respond another person came into the conversation and cut Conner off before he could say anything.

TJ: "My predecessor caring about concentration and not being hot headed. It forces me to ask who are you and what have you done with Tommy?"

Tommy: "Very funny TJ. Though you did a nice job coaching last night. I can't believe Conner really listens to you all of the time. I couldn't get him to do that when I was his teacher. Any way are you guys hungry? I am starving and I am sure Kim would like to see all of you."

They all nodded their heads as they started to walk out of the main lobby towards the door to the hotel where they spotted Bridge, Jack, Shane, and Sky all leaving the hotel as well.

TJ: "Guys you know that center/forward practice is at 4:00 and that guard practice is at 5:00 before our team practice at 6:00 right? Make sure you have your passes on you. It will be a lot easier to get into Madison Square Garden that way."

The four ex-rangers nodded their heads as they headed for the exit. Soon after Conner, Ethan, TJ, and Tommy left to go find Kim.

'


End file.
